Director, Strategic Accounts (BPM & Health Plans Contract Development)
Address: 200 WILMOT RD,DEERFIELD,IL,60015-04620-00001-2
Job ID 1767773BRThe Director, Strategic Accounts (Director, Contract Development & PBM Account Management) is responsible for the end-to-end leadership of a portfolio of Walgreens’ most complex and strategically important payer and PBM relationships. This role owns enterprise level account strategy, contract negotiations (including renewals, amendments, and new business), and long-term growth planning across assigned accounts.
Directors are accountable for developing and executing integrated account strategies that drive profitable growth, deepen enterprise partnerships, and align Walgreens’ capabilities to client needs. This includes identifying and executing opportunities to expand services, optimize contract economics, and mitigate risk across the portfolio.
The Director, Strategic Accounts provides leadership and direction to Strategic Account Managers supporting the portfolio and partners closely with cross functional stakeholders (including contracting, finance, operations, clinical, and growth teams) to ensure disciplined execution, clear governance, and consistent client outcomes. A deep understanding of client strategy, operating models, contract structures, and financial performance (P&L) is essential to success in this role.
This role serves as the primary executive escalation point for assigned strategic accounts and represents Walgreens at senior client forums and enterprise business reviews.
Job Responsibilities
Provide Account management function for assigned PBM clients, including:
- Work with client to provide solutions for critical needs
- Identify opportunities to increase revenue through the sale of new products and services or expanding access to existing products and services while optimizing or exiting business that is not profitable
- Transition the client relationship from financial/transactional to solutions orientated.
- Develop a negotiation strategy and work with various internal stakeholders to implement the strategy
- Work with payer partners to find common ground during negotiations and push through obstacles that are keeping a deal from being realized
- Provide contracting support to Sales for Health Plan and employer opportunities
- Maximize the value a client brings to Walgreens by developing new and innovative ways to partner with the client and identifying opportunities to expand services
- Collaborates cross-functionally with Sales, Finance, and Pricing colleagues to develop, analyze, and implement strategic account plans that maximize account profitability for assigned customer segments and accounts. Collaborates with the Pricing team to incorporate the impact of strategies and pricing decisions into financial forecasts. Utilizes specific account knowledge and understanding of contractual terms and actual performance to assist Sales partners in developing and enhancing account strategies, pricing, and contract language.
- Develops and manages account proposals related to products and services for assigned customer segments and accounts. Accountable for knowledge and understanding of the competitive landscape, customer issues, and business strategies that affect assigned accounts and contracts.
- Acts as the subject matter expert on departmental data, business metrics, and operational processes.
- Ensures that contract terms and conditions reflect pricing parameters of approved account proposals.
- Consult with legal to draft specific contract language that meets business objectives.
- Collaborates with the sales team on health plans and employer opportunities.
- Develops proposals that comply with Divisional goals and objective as well as Corporate policies and procedures. Provides direction on the methodology and approach to evaluate proposals. Ensures that the analytical framework for proposal development is consistent with company standards and ensures that action oriented data is available for decision makers.
- Collaborates with Sales colleagues in the review and approval process for specific account proposals. Ensures account proposals, models and pricing are accurate and completed in accordance with defined service levels in order to meet internal and external customer timelines.
- Presents proposals, benchmarks and strategy to governing committees as needed. Actively participates in discussions and answers questions regarding specific accounts and proposals.
- Develops and mentors staff through on-boarding, open communication, training and development opportunities and performance management processes; builds and inspires employee morale and motivation; ensures the team is appropriately staffed with required competencies; fosters a diverse and inclusive workplace.
Founded in 1901, Walgreens (www.walgreens.com) has a storied heritage of caring for communities for generations and proudly serves nearly 9 million customers and patients each day across its approximately 8,500 stores throughout the U.S. and Puerto Rico, and leading omni channel platforms. Walgreens has approximately 220,000 team members, including nearly 90,000 healthcare service providers, and is committed to being the first choice for retail pharmacy and health services, building trusted relationships that create healthier futures for customers, patients, team members and communities.
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Basic Qualifications
- Bachelor’s degree and at least six years of experience in a combination of Contracting, Finance, Account Management, or Corporate Strategy OR High School Diploma/GED and at least nine years of experience in a combination of Contracting, Finance, Account Management, or Corporate Strategy.
- Experience evaluating information to determine compliance with standards, laws, and regulations.
- Experience leading cross-functional teams in developing and implementing complex, high-value deal/negotiation strategies.
- Experience creating process maps for large complex matrix process improvement projects.
- At least two years of experience managing client/vendor relationships.
- Ability to work with counterparties to find common ground.
- Experience building and maintaining relationships within a matrixed team.
- Experience analyzing data to identify issues, trends, and exceptions that results in improvement and finds solutions.
- Experience in diagnosing, isolating, and resolving complex issues and recommending and implementing strategies to resolve problems.
- Experience developing strategic initiatives which align with business goals and budget.
- Advanced level skill in Microsoft PowerPoint (for example: changing picture styles, customizing animation and/or setting automatic slide timings).
- Advanced level skill in Microsoft Word (for example: adding developer tab, creating a macro, formatting table style, inserting comments and/or creating a mail merge).
- Advanced level skill in Microsoft Excel (for example: using AVERAGE function, merging and centering cells, printing centered page and/or creating a pivot table).
- At least 5 years of experience contributing to financial decisions in the workplace.
- At least 5 years of direct leadership, indirect leadership and/or cross- functional team leadership.
- Willing to travel up to 25% of the time for business purposes (within state and out of state)
Preferred Qualifications
- Master’s degree or MBA.
- Experience leading strategic payer, PBM, or enterprise healthcare accounts within a complex, highly regulated environment.
- Demonstrated experience owning enterprise level contract negotiations, including renewals, amendments, and multiyear agreements with national or regional clients.
- Experience developing and executing integrated account strategies that drive profitable growth, risk mitigation, and long-term partnership value.
- Proven ability to partner cross functionally with finance, operations, clinical, and sales teams to align strategy, execution, and financial outcomes.
- Experience interpreting P&L, contract economics, and performance data to inform account strategy and executive decision-making.
- Prior experience mentoring or leading senior individual contributors or account teams supporting large, complex client portfolios.
Salary Range: $165900 - $282200 / Salaried
